Claire Kerrane (Roscommon-Galway, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Okay. I want to make the point again that where rural communities are opening their arms and refugees have come in, the Government needs to support those communities. I have spoken to the Minister of State about the town of Ballaghaderreen, which is a prime example. From 2017, the Syrian refugees began arriving, and from that point to this, additional resources and services have not been put into the town. That is not fair. It is part of the reason we are here today and why so many rural communities are now up in arms and frustration levels are growing. It is because they are not getting the resources. Looking at what we have seen in Clare, if resources followed the increase in population in those communities, the argument that we are not getting additional resources or services could not be used. Let us take that argument away and ensure the resources and services follow the influx of population into these rural communities.

I ask again that the Government looks at a cross-departmental approach. I ask that it looks at the rural towns and others that have taken in refugees and families seeking international protection with a view to seeing what can be done, Department by Department, to support that increase in population, including in education to health and other Departments that have a role to play. Let us look at doing it that way. We must provide the additional resources. We cannot say the money is not there to do it. Let us provide the resources and services to give this a chance to work out in the way it can.

All this frustration and tension can be avoided in an awful lot of cases if we support the communities. It is a fair request, but it is not happening. The Government needs to do more on that cross-departmental approach.

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